Mercury – Traces of the turbulent early days of the Solar System
Mercury – Traces of the turbulent early days of the Solar System
Similar to the surface of the Moon, Mercury's surface has been impacted and reshaped by bodies of all sizes over its four-and-a-half-billion-year history. Researchers even speculate that the planet may have suffered a massive impact in its early days, blasting away large portions of its crust and mantle and hurling them into space. The European-Japanese BepiColombo mission will search for evidence of this cosmic collision from the end of 2026. The mosaic image from the NASA probe MESSENGER shows the impact crater Hokusai. It has an impressive system of rays of ejected material that extend up to 1000 kilometres above the planet.
Credit:
NASA/JHU-APL/Carnegie Institution of Washington